Chair-elect: University Senate, 2007 - 2009
Chair, Governance Council of University Senate, 2007
Member, Senate Executive Committee, 2007 - 2009
2007 Torch Award for outstanding contributions to the
undergraduate academic experience
Associate Director - New York Center for Studies on the
Origins of Life (NASA), 1998 - 2006
NASA Principal Investigator, Exobiology Program, 1998 - 2006
Board of Directors, Dudley Observatory, 2002 - 2004, 2005 - 2006
2005 Executive Award from the Science Teachers' Association
of New York State, 2005
Director, University's Astronomical Observatory (2002 - present)
State University of New York Chancellor's Award for Excellence in
Teaching
University at Albany President's Award for
Excellence in Teaching (1996)
Activity on Professional Panels for Federal Agencies
(NASA) President's Commission on the Moon, Mars and Beyond, 2004
(invited testimony)
(NASA) Astrobiology Institutes Review Panel, 2003
(NSF) Math and Science Partnerships Review Panel, 2003, 2004
(NSF) Math and Science Partnerships Site Visit Team, 2004 (Chair),
2005 (Chair)
(NASA) Lunar and Planetary Geosciences Review Panel, 1994, 1995,
1996, 2005
(NASA) Discovery Missions Review Panel, 1994, 2006
Chair - Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, 1996 -
1999
COURSES TAUGHT (2005-present)
CHM 120 General Chemistry I (3 credits)
ENV 105 Introduction to Environmental Science (3 credits)
ENV 175H Dinosaurs in Jurassic Environments (4 credits; Honors
College)
ENV 250 Energy and Resources (3 credits)
ENV 350Y Environmental Geochemistry (4 credits)
ENV 490H Topics in Environmental Science (3 credits; Honors College)
UFSP 100 Freshman Seminar Program (1 credit)
UNI 101H Foundations of Great Ideas (4 credits; Honors College)
PROFESSIONAL SOCIETIES
Geochemical Society
Geological Society of America
American Chemical Society
Sigma Xi
Omicron Delta Kappa Honor Society (Distinguished Member)
PUBLICATIONS (2000 - present)
57. Gray E. Q., Hocker C. L., Ponzo J. B., Coonrod K. R., and Delano J. W., (2007). Theropod
footprints at Dinosaur State Park in Rocky Hill, Connecticut, USA:
Additional constraints on the trackmakers and the physical
environment. Ichnos (submitted for review in July 2007).
56. Ferris J. P.and Delano J. W.,
(2007). The RNA World scenario for the origins of life, in Symposium
Series of the American Chemical Society. Oxford University
Press. (invited chapter; submitted February 2007)
55. Zellner N. E. B., Delano J. W.,
Swindle T. D., Barra F., Olsen E., and Whittet D. C. B., (2007).
Chemical compositions and 40Ar/39Ar ages of eleven glasses from
Apollo 17 regolith, 71501,262: A record of impact events and
mare volcanism.. Meteoritics and Planetary Science, in final
preparation.
54. Delano J. W., Zellner
N. E. B., Barra F., Olson E., Swindle T. D., Tibbetts N. J., and
Whittet D. C. B., (2007). An integrated approach to understanding
Apollo 16 impact glasses: Chemistry, isotopes, and shape.
Meteoritics and Planetary Science, 42(6), p. 993-1004.
53. Zhu B., Delano J. W.,
and Kidd W. S. F., (2005). Recovery of original basalt composition
from melt inclusions in detrital Cr-rich spinel: An example from
mid-Cretaceous sandstones in the eastern Himalaya. Earth and
Planetary Science Letters, 233, p. 295-309.
51. Zellner N. E. B., Spudis P. D., Delano J. W., and Whittet D. C. B., (2002). Impact
glasses from the Apollo 14 landing site and implications for
regional geology. Journal of Geophysical Research, 107 (E11), p.
5102-5115.
50. Delano J. W., (2001).
Redox history of the Earth's interior since ~3900 Ma: Implications
for prebiotic molecules. Origin of Life and Evolution of the
Biosphere, 31, p. 311-341.
49. Elkins L. T., Fernandes V., Delano
J.
W., and Grove T. L., (2000). Origin of lunar ultramafic
green glasses: Constraints from phase equilibrium studies.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 64, p. 2339-2350.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
My research deals with environments on the early Earth (bombardment
history; composition of atmosphere during the Hadean era), and how
those environments influenced the emergence of sustainable life on
this planet. This work dealing with the bombardment history
involves chemical isotopic analyses of impact-produced glasses
collected during the Apollo missions to the Moon.
An Apollo 17 impact glass spherule measuring ~250
microns in diameter has an 40Ar/39Ar age of 130 +/- 25 Ma.
The planar surface in the center of the image is a polished
surface that allowed the sample to be chemically analyzed by
electron microprobe prior to its being removed from the adhesive
and isotopically dated.
Information
about the composition of the volcanic gasses that entered the
Archean/Hadean atmosphere relies on the chemical behavior of
transition elements (e.g., Cr, V) as recorded by the whole-rock
compositions of basaltic-to-komatiitic rocks erupted on the Earth
through time.
As discussed in Delano (2001), the composition of gases
released by high-temperature, terrestrial volcanism during the
last ~3900 Ma has remained nearly constant.
In addition, an emerging area of research deals with Jurassic
environments as recorded in the geochemical compositions of
sedimentary rocks in the Hartford Basin (Connecticut).
My family lives in rural setting not far from the UAlbany campus
where we are trying to use our professional knowledge of the
environment to live a "greener" life-style (i.e., practice what we
preach). To that end, we have (a) installed 3.2 kilowatts [kW]
of solar panels for generating ~40% of our annual home electrical
energy usage, (b) installed a solar thermal system for generating
most of our domestic hot water that should displace ~2000 kWh of
electrical energy annually, (c) purchase the remainder of our
electrical energy from renewable sources, specifically wind, that is
option available to all electric rate-payers in New York State, and
(d) participate in an ambitious recyling campaign that has cut the
volume of our domestic waste by nearly 75%. We host visits to
our home by undergraduate students majoring in Environmental Science
and by students belonging to the University's Honors College to
illustrate our initiatives at trying to live in a more
environmentally responsible manner. Although we have a long
way to go before the goal of living sustainably is met, my family
has begun the journey and continues to make progress.
I have delivered ~180 invited talks since January 2000 to public and
professional groups.
UNIVERSITY SERVICE (2007)
Member, Tenure and Promotion Committee, College of Arts and Sciences
Member, Selection Committee for University Distinguished Professors
Member, President's Task Force for Environmental Sustainability
Co-Chair, Committee on Energy Use (President's Environmental
Sustainability Task Force)
Member, President's Advisory Council on the Prevention of Alcohol
Abuse
Member, Honors College Governing Board
Member, Search Committee for Director of University Energy Programs
Member, Selection Committee for President's Award for Leadership
Chair-Elect, University Senate
Chair, Governance Council of University Senate
Member, Search Committee for Dean of the College of Arts and
Sciences
Member, University Council
Member, University Retention Committee
Member, Senate Executive Committee
Member, SUNY Chancellor's Advisory Committee for UAlbany Interim
President
Graduate student theses and dissertations
supervised by Professor J.W. Delano at the University at Albany
Geological Sciences MSc
listing PhD listing
Field Research in the Mohawk Valley (1995)
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